Though many Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) providers may not believe it, marketing is critical to attracting investors. The popularity of the category makes many managers believe money will just flow in.

This couldn’t be further from the truth.

People will not (actually, cannot) invest in an ETF they are not aware of or do not have confidence in. This is particularly true for newer offerings trying to reach the all-important $150 million in assets under management (AUM) and three years of performance data, which is when ETFs are recognized, rated, and gain some level of credibility.

Well-considered marketing with careful branding and messaging is critical to standing out in today’s increasingly crowded market.

This article reveals 11 things you can do to effectively promote your ETF to investors it could be right for.

1. Identify Your ETF Space

Marketing considerations should begin long before actual marketing happens.

The development of your solution should begin with a fundamental question: What specific investment problem will my ETF solve?

In other words, what’s your niche?

The answer is your ETF’s unique value proposition. This is true whether you’re targeting retail investors, institutional clients, or both.

For example, your solution could help deliver:

• Improved tax efficiency
• Greater portfolio diversification
• Enhanced liquidity
• Protection against market volatility.

The most successful ETF issuers identify genuine market gaps, or combinations of attributes not currently in existing solutions, although that is becoming more challenging in today’s crowded exchange traded fund marketplace.

By examining where current offerings fall short, areas where the market is overcrowded, and understanding regulatory limitations, you can find a niche for your ETF that investors are likely to respond to.

2. Identify Your Investors

Who is your ETF right for? These are the prospective investors you want to target to make your marketing efforts more efficient. Anyone you reach outside of this is just a waste of marketing money and effort.

For instance, if your ETF is focused on commodities, you must reach investors interested in alternatives. Anyone who has a clean 60 (equities)/40 (fixed income) portfolio isn’t going to be interested in a commodities product, and it will be a tough slog to convince them to change their minds.

Your index service provider could be a valuable resource for finding prospective investors, especially if they have access to data that charts investor interest. You can also target investors based on interest on many social media platforms.

3. Develop Messaging

Use what you know about your target audience and the unique aspects of your solution to come up with key messages. Ask yourself:

• Why did you create your solution?
• Who is it right for?
• What financial portfolio gaps does it fill?

Explaining these things in non-jargon language will help you connect with prospects.

4. Come up with a Content Plan

To attract ETF investors today, you must share content that leverages your key messages to compel them to invest with you. Ensure your content is educational and not promotional. No one wants to be sold to. They want to come to their own conclusion as to why they should put their money into your ETF.

Also consider the media you deliver your content through. Investment process material could be best shared in explainer videos. Showing how your solution fits into a portfolio could be effectively accomplished through a diagram or infographic. Blog posts aren’t the only option.

5. Find the Right Promotional Platforms

Where do your prospective ETF investors spend time online? If you’re targeting high-net-worth professionals, it could be on Linkedin. If your solution fits into a portfolio optimized for retirement distributions, Facebook could be an effective place to connect. If you have an ETF focused on gold, it could be smart to insert your brand into forums where devotees discuss the subject they are passionate about.

6. Leverage Data to Improve Your Digital ETF Marketing Efforts

Nobody gets their marketing right the first time out. It takes data-driven trial and error to optimize efforts. Every platform you use to promote your ETF, including social media, email, and your website, delivers data that can help you improve your marketing efforts.

Don’t waste time on bad leads. Target people who could benefit from your ETF solution. Then watch progress through your marketing and sales cycle. Compare actual results to platform and industry benchmarks.

• Are your social media click through rates and cost per click meeting or beating the mark? If not, it could be time to rethink your social platforms or how you present your brand on them.
• Is the return on your investment paying off? Are people investing enough in your ETF to make your promotional efforts worthwhile? If the answer is no, consider targeting higher net worth individuals.
• How are your emails performing? If they are below financial services industry open and click through rate benchmarks, you should revisit the content you include in them.
• Are people taking the actions you want on your website, such as providing contact information or making appointments? It may be time to install tracking software to determine what is turning off website visitors.

Becoming a marketing data expert could help make your ETF stand out from competitors in a tight sector. The pros at Sondhelm Partners are available to support your marketing optimization efforts.

7. Develop an ETF Comparison Experience

Is your ETF better than those of your competitors’? If it stands out from the pack, it could be wise to develop some type of online experience that demonstrates the benefits your ETF can deliver to investors.

A well-crafted comparison tool should guide potential investors toward understanding your ETF’s value proposition through interactive discovery, not passive marketing claims.

8. Don’t Forget Actual-World ETF Promotional Activities

Conferences and events can be great places to connect with active, passionate investors. Event participation and sponsorships are more personal ways to accelerate your ETF’s growth, enhance brand visibility, and build meaningful connections. One of Sondhelm’s ETF clients does this by bringing a cutting-edge robot to events to gain attention and drive interest in the brand.

9. Leverage Public Relations

ETFs are hot right now. They are constantly in the news. That’s why it’s critical to invest in public relations (PR) support right now. A solid PR team can get you interviews in respected publications, news outlets, podcasts, and more. A strong public relations effort can expand your brand visibility and reach while building credibility because it earns the halo effect of appearing in a respected outlet. Plus, you can link to the content from your website to build authority, which supports search engine optimization.

10. Build Relationships with Micro-influencers

Micro-influencers who understand and appreciate your product can be among the most effective messengers you can find. They have close virtual relationships with people who could be your next investors. 

Here are some different types of micro-influencers to consider:

Financial educators

These are people who explain strategies and solutions to investors. Examples include the social media personality Kyla Scanlon, who helps her Gen Z audience understand the world of finance or established bloggers like Michael Kitces. 

Market analysts

Analysts provide perspectives on the markets and may recommend strategies and solutions aligned with their takes. Many influencers are analysts who have built up their own audiences over time. People like ETFTrends Todd Rosenbluth or Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas are notable examples.

Niche investment specialists

Niche investment specialists are influencers who cover a narrow slice of the market, in this case, some subset of ETFs. They typically have passionate followers that could be very interested in your solution if it is aligned with their thinking.

Bottom line: Micro-influencers are typically skilled at explaining complex financial products, making advanced concepts understandable to most investors. They have close connections with their followers, which means they will take an endorsement of your solution very seriously.

11. Optimize Your Website for Search

Perhaps the most important thing you can do to market your ETF business is optimize your website for search. Of course, if someone is looking for an ETF like yours, you must be found online.

The exchange traded fund space is a crowded one. However, if you optimize your site for search engines and artificial intelligence generated summaries, people who are likely to invest with you will be able to find you. Artificial intelligence has made search engines far more powerful because they can understand searcher intent.

Some things you can do to improve your search positioning and increase your presence in AI summaries include:

• Writing your content in digestible bites that can be incorporated in search and AI summaries.
• Break up your content with clear, descriptive subheads so bots can scan it and understand what it is about.
• Optimize your website for loading speed and overall user experience. Search engines are more likely to recommend sites that to not present barriers to visitors.
• Demonstrate originality, authority, and expertise in your content to differentiate it from AI-generated or wrote material.
• Tag your content appropriately so it sends the right signals to Google and other search engines.

The SEO experts at Sondhelm Partners are always available to help you improve your rankings.

ETF Promotion: The Final Word

ETFs are hot right now, making it the perfect time to promote your fund to investors who could be interested in it. Leverage the tips in this guide to get a jump-start on your competitors and all the new ETFs entering the market.

Need help promoting your ETF? The experts at Sondhelm Partners are available for a consultation. They can offer fresh perspectives on how to get your ETFs in front of the investors you want to reach.